Chelsea Player Ratings vs Southampton
Chelsea were held to a 1-1 draw by 10 man Southampton which gave Manchester City the chance to cut the gap to Chelsea at the top of the Premier League. Although Chelsea dominated most of the game it was Southampton who took the lead thanks to a great run and finish by Mane. Chelsea leveled before half time thanks to a good finish by Eden Hazard and started to pile the pressure in the second half.
Southampton were reduced to 10 men when Morgan Schneiderlain was sent off for a couple of rash challenges but they held on as Chelsea could not get that second goal. The draw meant that Chelsea remained on top of the league going into the New Year and we have the ratings for the Chelsea performance.
Thibaut Courtois: 6/10
Had to pick the ball out of the net and that was all that Courtois seemed to do in the entire game. He wasn’t troubled much by Southampton and had nothing much to do all game.
Branislav Ivanovic: 7/10
Decent in attack and defending, Ivanovic wasn’t the biggest threat in attacking terms but he did his job well and put in a decent shift.
John Terry: 5/10
Terry was at fault for the goal Chelsea conceded as he tried to play the offside trap but barring that he was very good at dealing with the Saints attack.
Gary Cahill: 7/10
The more composed of the two central defenders, Cahill again had a decent day at the back, he didn’t let Southampton or its strikers do much in terms of attack.
Felipe Luis: 6/10
The Brazilian started the game in place of Azpilicueta and was resolute in defence but he could not provide the attacking outlet that Azpilicueta provides and was found wanting in the attacking third.
Nemanja Matic: 7/10
Again, the Serbian was strong in midfield and was the one player trying to snuff out Southampton attacks before they blossomed, he did have a couple of shaky moments but nothing too severe to cause Chelsea problems.
Jon Obi Mikel: 7/10
Was brought into the team to provide a second shield in front of the defence but was substituted in the second half to bring in a more attacking threat. Mikel was solid in his role and provided cover for the defenders.
Andre Schurrle: 5/10
The German was given a chance to start the game but wasn’t effective enough for the Blues and was substituted at half time for Willian.
Cesc Fabregas: 7/10
The assist leader made it another one in that column as he racked up his 13th assist of the season, the same amount as Gerrard led the league with at the end of last season. Cesc was also booked for a dive in the box which actually was a penalty to Chelsea and would feel disappointed about that.
Eden Hazard: 8/10
The best attacking outlet for Chelsea as he cut inside to score the equalizer, he did have a few great runs into the box and played a few good balls but no one could reach at the end of them.
Diego Costa: 6/10
Diego Costa was marshalled really well by the Southampton defence and couldn’t really provide any threat to the Saints. He couldn’t break free from the Southampton defenders and had one of his more quiet games for Chelsea.
Substitutes:
Willian: 6/10
Was brought on to replace Schurrle but could not help Chelsea with getting the go ahead goal.
Didier Drogba: 5/10
Drogba seemed out of touch and he was brought on with 15 minutes to go but could not do much in the game.
Loic Remy: 4/10
The Frenchman didn’t really have much time to make an impact as he was brought on in the 89th minute.